Professor Michael Baumann, president of ECCO - the European CanCer Organisation - which is part of the Alliance, said: "Chronic diseases, including many cancers, are often treatable but not always curable. They represent a major burden, not just in terms of the problems they cause to individual patients, but also in terms of the financial burdens on patients and on national governments through treatment costs and loss of economic activity. The four main causes of chronic disease - tobacco, poor diet, lack of physical activity and alcohol consumption - are all preventable, yet 97% of health expenditure currently goes on treatment and only 3% is spent on prevention. ECCO fully supports all of the actions suggested in the report from the Chronic Disease Alliance for tackling chronic diseases, and we urge the EU and Member States to implement its recommendations in full."

Professor David Kerr, president of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO), which is also a member of the Alliance, said: "Chronic diseases, which often share common causes, are preventable tragedies for every person affected by them. By taking action now to prevent them, the EU and national governments would save lives as well as money. For the first time ever, leading health experts in cancer, cardiovascular, kidney, liver and respiratory diseases, diabetes and hypertension, have come together to present a unifying and integrated message to national governments that prevention through life-style changes can make a significant impact on a group of diseases that will affect two thirds of people by the time they reach retirement age."

Alojz Peterle, Member of the European Parliament and President of MEPs Against Cancer (MAC), one of the co-organisers of the event said: "We urge MEPs, the European Commission, the Council of Ministers and national governments to work together to tackle the problem of chronic diseases. It is only by working in partnership that we will be able to put in place effective Europe-wide policies aimed at preventing these conditions that cause so much suffering and death each year. Prevention is undoubtedly cheaper than disease management and treatment and, therefore, it makes economic sense to pursue these policies now at a time when many national governments are having to curb their expenditure."

The first joint meeting of the MEPs Against Cancer, the MEP Heart Group, the MEP Group for Kidney Health, and the EU Diabetes Working Group will take place on Tuesday 5 October, between 18.30-20.30 hrs (CEST) at the European Parliament in Room A3G - 2. It is organised by MEPS Frieda Brepoels, Simon Busuttil, Baroness Sarah Ludford, Linda McAvan, Marisa Matias, Alojz Peterle, Christel Schaldemose and Dirk Sterckx.

Source: ECCO-the European CanCer Organisation